Portable nail stripper



Sept. 29, 1953 R. COTTAR 2,653,318 PORTABLE NAIL STRIPPER Filed Aug. 31,1950 v 2 Sheets-=Sheet 1 D I s; 1 ,2;- Jul A z j: I

INVENTOR. Z. 5 BY RoBERT COTTAR l4 ATTORNEYS.

Sept. 29, 1953 R. COTTAR 2,653,318

PORTABLE NAIL STRIPPER Filed Aug. 51, 1950 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.Fast-RT 6077/? W 7 K'W 1' ATTORNEYS.

Patented Sept. 29, 1953 UNITED STATES A OFFICE 4 Claims.

The invention relates to a new and useful form of a portable nailstripper, that is, a device comprising a receptacle from which nails maybe readily withdrawn in position for use.

Objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in parthereinafter and in part will be obvious herefrom, or may be learned bypractice with the invention, the same being realized and attained bymeans of the instrumentalities and combinations pointed out in theappended claims.

The invention consists in the novel parts, constructions, arrangements,combinations and improvements herein shown and described.

The accompanying drawings, referred to herein and constituting a parthereof, illustrate one embodiment of the invention, and together withthe description, serve to explain the principles of the invention.

Of the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of a device embodying the invention, shownin position of use on a carpenters overalls;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged front perspective of the device; I

Fig. 3 is an end elevation thereof;

Fig. 4 is an elevation of the rear half ofthe device, viewed from theinside;

Fig. 5 is an elevation of the forward half of said device, viewed fromthe inside;

Fig. 6 is a horizontal section on line 6-6 of Fig. 2; and

Fig. '7 is a vertical section on line i--l of Fig. 2.

The invention is directed to providing an improved portable nailstripper having maximum convenience and adaptability for use by acarpenter or other workman. Objects and advantages of the inventioninclude providing a receptacle from which nails can be readily strippedor removed by the workman so as to come out between his thumb andfingers in position read to be driven; and to provide such a devicewhich has no working or moving parts and no projecting edges or cornerswhich will inconvenience or injure the user. My invention is carefullydesigned to permit the free feeding and removal of nails from a jumbledmass thereof with the minimum interference and interruption so that thenails may be stripped rapidly and freely. Another object of theinvention is to provide a portable nail stripper which the workman canhandle and use regardless of the position in which he may be working,such as sitting, stooping or bending over. The device is also adapted tobe removably attached {to the workmans overalls, apron or other clothingwithout pulling or binding or otherwise interfering with his freedom ofmovement while nailing or handling other tools or reaching, or moving inany direction. The hands of the user are left completely free and hispockets are also available for carrying other articles.

Another object of the invention is to provide a receptacle in which asubstantially large mass of nails may be contained, but in which thosebeing fed for stripping are relieved from obstruction or interference bythe main weight of the mass of nails therein.

In general the stripper of my invention comprises a relatively flat,hollow metal container with an open top and slotted bottom, generallyshaped like a hopper. The hopper is supported by a clip-like frameadapted to be quickly hung on the bib of the carpenters overalls orapron and shaped so as to hold the hopper parallel to his chest andspaced therefrom for access by his thumb and fingers. The bottom of thehopper is provided with a transverse slo-t Wide enough to permit thepoints and shanks of nails to pass freely, but too narrow to permit theheads to pass. This slot is designed so as to have a horizontal bottomportion of substantial length, but

I at each end curves upwardly to terminate in a substantially verticaldirection. This arrangement causes any nails in the hopper which are notprojecting properly through the slot to fall back and leave free thenails being stripped. In the upper part of the hopper there is provideda pair of wings constituting a downwardly narrowing support with anarrow throat, designed to support the main mass of nails and permitthem to feed gradually into the lower part of the hopper so that thenails therein will not be Weighted down by the mass of nails in thehopper.

It will be understood that the foregoing general description and thefollowing detailed description as well are exemplary and explanatory butare not restrictive of the invention.

Referring now in detail to the present preferred embodiment of theinvention, illustrated by way of example in the accompanying drawings,the hopper for containing nails comprises a rear portion I, constitutingroughly one-half thereof, as separately shown in Fig. 4. This portion isprovided with a fiat rear vertical wall IE! and fiat forwardly extendingend walls I i and i2.

At the lower part of rear wall It it slopes downwardly and forwardly toform theinclined, flat base portion E3. The central part of base portionit terminates in an edge It which is hori- Zontal for a substantialextent but which, beginning somewhat inside the end walls H and I2,curves rather sharply upwardly and forwardly to form, at the right-handside, the forwardly extending wing l5, and at the opposite side, asimilar wing it. The upper edges l1 and 18, respectively, of said wingsare preferably slanted forwardly and upwardly to terminate in roundedends or tongues i9 and 20, respectively.

The front half or portion 2 of the hopper is essentially complementaryin form to the rear half I. It comprises the front flat vertical wall 2ihaving end walls 22 and 23. Said end walls are spaced so as to overlapthe end walls I! and I2 of the rear section when the hopper isassembled. A downwardly and rearwardly inclined base portion 2d isprovided on the front portion of the hopper, said base portionterminating in a horizontal edge 25 and upwardly curved wing portions 25and 27!, terminating in tongues 28 and 29, as shown. The extent andcurvature of the edge 25 and its associated parts are exactlycomplementary to those of edge [4 in the rear portion of the hopper.

In accordance with the invention the edges id and 25 are spaced apart toprovide an open slot 33 which, like said edges, extends horizontallyacross the bottom of the hopper and curves upwardly to the vertical atthe termini of the edges adjacent the four tongues I9, 29, 28 and 25.This slot 3i? is suitably spaced to permit the projection. therethroughof the shanks of nails, but to prevent passage of nail heads, as shownin Figs. 1 and l, for example. The width of the slot 33 will of coursevary with the size of nails to be used and for this purpose the twosections of the hopper may be spaced varying distances. Accordingly,horizontal slots 32 and 33 are formed in wall 22 and similar slots 34and 35 in wall 23 of the front section 2. Four set screws 36 areprovided, being tapped into suitable bosses 3? formed in the end wallsII and I2 of the rear portion of the hopper. When the hopper isassembled, the width of slot 35 may thus be set as desired.

In accordance with one feature of the invention the upper portion of thehopper is provided with a downwardly narrowing support for supportingthe major part of the mass of nails therein. For this purpose the rearportion of the hopper is provided with downwardly and inwardly inclinedwings as and 41, the upper ends and the rear edges of which are weldedor otherwise fixed to the end and rear walls, respectively. Said wingsii! and M have smooth flat surfaces and at their lower portions are bentdownwardly and somewhat laterally to provide spaced terminal wings 42and .43, thus forming a restricted throat for the downward passage ofnails from the upper portion of the hopper. The front section of thehopper is similarly provided w h complem ary w n members and 46 w h re pced to v rlie and. be parallel t the wings s0 and M the assembledhopper. Thus it will be clear that the two sets of wings form a supportfor a mass of nails in the upper p r i n. f the hopper, p rmi ting saidnails to feed downwardly gradually through the restricted throat andinto the enlarged bottom portion thereof. Thus only a small part of thetotal mass of nails in he h pper will exert downward pressure on thenails adjacent the slot 30, and then only in the central portionthereof, leaving the nails adjacent the upwardly inclined ends of theslot free from binding. It is also important that the slopes of the.bottom walls 4 l3 and 24 of the hopper be quite steep to facilitate freeflow of nails to the slot. I have found that the angle formed by saidwalls, with the slot 35} as apex should not be greater than 60.

In accordance with the invention, means are also provided for removablysupporting the stripper on the users chest, hanging from the upper edgeof the bib A of his overalls or apron in a convenient position. Asshown, these means preferably comprise a spring-like bail or clipcomposed of a frame of sturdy, resilient wire, preferably of onecontinuous length. As shown, two spaced, vertical reaches 50 and 5| arewelded to the rear face of rear plate [8 of the hopper adjacent theedges thereof. Horizontal reaches '52 and 53 extend rearwardly asubstantial distance, preferably about two inches, and then turnupwardly to form vertical members 54 and 55, preferably about fourinches long. The wire then is bent downwardly to form parallel verticallegs 56 and 51 which extend vertically downwardly to slightly below thelower ends of the vertical members 5% and ti. The two legs 5'5 and 57are each provided with a horizontal cross piece 60 which terminatewithin a sleeve 5 l Two horizontal legs 63 and 84 extend horizontallyrearwardly from the lower ends of the members 5| and 52, respectively,and are connected by a cross bar 55. Bar 65 lies slightly above sleeve5! and slightly to the rear thereof, the legs 56 and 51 being bentslightly inwardly. Thus when the bail, constituting legs 5S, 5? andsleeve El, is slid downwardly over the inside of the upper edge of thecarpenters overall bib A, it exerts a gripping spring-like actionagainst bar 65 and against the legs 54 and 55, tending to hold thehopper in position, as shown, but being quickly removed when desired.

The use of my nail stripper will be fairly obvious to those skilled inthe art. As shown in Fig. l, nails may be withdrawn by the workman whopulls them outwardly and upwardly from the upper ends of the slot. Thedevice is symmetrical so that it may be used by both right-handed andleft-handed workmen. The substantially vertical terminal portions of theslot 36 provide an important advantage in that as nails are drawn towardthe end of the slot, any which do not project through the slot in theproper manner are shaken loose and will tend to fall by gravity backinto the bottom of the hopper, thus leaving free the nails beingwithdrawn.

The particular curvature of the slot also facilitates use of thestripper in any position because the workmen may lean sideways in eitherdirection to a considerable angle and the nails will not slide out ofthe slot ends.

The construction of the supporting bail or clip is such that the hopperstands well away from the users body at all times. lhis leaves plenty ofclearance for his thumb to pass behind the nails to seize them even whenhe is in a stooped or sitting position. At the same time the hopper isessentially narrow fore and aft so that it does not get in the way whilethe carpenter is reaching, working at a bench, sawing or handling othertools. Because of the bail construction, it rests snugly against hischest and does not tip or swing. At the same time it does not pull downon his neck or bind his waist.

The invention in its broader aspects is not limited to the specificmechanisms shown and described but departures may be made therefromwithin the scope of the accompanying claims without departing from theprinciples of the invention and without sacrificing its chiefadvantages.

What is claimed is:

1. A nail stripper including in combination a hopper for containingnails adapted to be supported in a substantially upright position, aslot in the lower portion of the hopper for permitting nail shanks toproject from the hopper and be withdrawn therefrom, said hopper havingwing means extending from its opposite sides thereof, said wing meansforming a downwardly narrowing support for retaining a substantial bodyof nails in the upper portion of said hopper with the lower portion ofsaid means forming a restricted outlet for feeding a limited amount ofnails from said body into the lower portion of the hopper.

2. A nail stripper as defined in claim 1 in which the wing meanscomprises two pairs of wings, one pair overlapping the wings of theother pair.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName Date 818,978 Salmon Apr. 24, 1906 992,810 Scantlin May 23, 19111,152,301 Culhane Aug. 31, 1915 1,659,763 Breithaupt Feb. 21, 19281,683,328 Breithaupt Sept. 4, 1928 2,041,057 Follett May 19, 19362,487,489 Spader Nov. 8, 1949

